Twin Dilemma
by enchantment1972
Summary: Gem and Gemma are rarely apart and have never been at odds with each other. That's all about to change once Gemma and Flynn's friendship blossoms into romance.


**Author's Note:** My husband surprised my daughter and I at Christmas with a wooden treasure chest that contained almost every series of Power Rangers. RPM was one of them and I instantly fell in love with it. This is my take on Gemma and Flynn's potential romance after viewing the RPM episode, "Not So Simple," many, many times. :)

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own anything in relation to RPM or any Power Ranger series.

 _Dear Super Cool Journal,_

 _I knew something was different when they started finishing each other's sentences. Helping Flynn with his Road Attack zord was supposed to be a one-time thing but then they started spending more time together. Working on projects to improve their performance is one thing, but spending time together just to be together? That's something else. Regardless of why they're together, the simple mechanics is this, she's_ _ **my**_ _sister. So why is she hanging out with Flynn? Let me give you an example…_

Gemma's lips curve into a full blown grin when she hears the familiar footsteps of Flynn running down the stairs for breakfast. Making his way into the kitchen, he calls out, "Good morning," and Gemma finishes, "Sunshine! How did you-" "Sleep?" he asks casually. "Quite well, thank you. And how would you feel about…" "Having pancakes for breakfast?" she inquires excitedly. "That would be a perfect way to start the day!"

"Fantastic!" he exclaims eagerly while shaking his fists in front of him, revving himself up for the day. "So, you've shown me your skills in mechanics, how about assisting me in the kitchen?"

"I'd love to!" she chirps as she hops off the kitchen stool and practically bounces over to him. "I know how much you love to cook, is there any special ingredient that we'll be adding to the pancakes?"

"Anything but detonator putty," he eyes her with an amused glance as she blushes when he lifts her hand and kisses the tips of her fingers.

 _They didn't know that I had been standing in the shadows as they were completely oblivious to anything but each other. Odd, as Gemma has never been that interested in cooking before. And why did he keep bringing her fingers to his lips? She couldn't have been feeding him anything; they hadn't even started cooking yet! Well, that wasn't the only thing I've noticed lately. They're also becoming closer, sharing glances full of meaning without needing to speak and holding hands. If her hands are cold then why doesn't she just ask for gloves, I'd get them for her, she doesn't need his hands to warm them. I've_ _ **always**_ _taken care of Gemma, I've always watched out for her and Flynn needs to know that. So with that being said, I know I have to say something to him…_

"Ha, caught you with your hands in the cookie jar, love!" crows Flynn as he snatches a cookie out of Gemma's hand. "You know, Dr. K wouldn't appreciate you plundering her freshly bought favorite brand of cookies."

"Believe me, I know, but I couldn't help myself!" She gives him a sheepish smile. "Growing up in Alphabet Soup, we only ever received anything non-nutritional on our birthdays when we were given cake. Why do you think the three of us have such a sweet tooth?"

Flynn's smile suddenly drops into a grimace even as his eyes soften with sadness. "I hate to think of you growing up there." He reaches out and trails the back of his fingers down the side of her cheek. "Nobody should be forced to live like that, especially someone as full of life as you." He shakes his head slightly in amazement. "I don't know how you managed to do it."

"It wasn't so bad," she insists in an effort to ease his mind, "I mean, at least not so much when you don't know what you're missing." She glances up at him shyly. "Although, if I had known back then what I was going to have to look forward to, I definitely would have tried to escape a lot sooner."

His smile is instant and full of male pride as he puffs out his chest. "Well, I can hardly blame you, I am quite the catch." She rolls her eyes at his ego but can't help but smile back at him in return. "And you," he moves closer to take her hand and tug her closer for a kiss, "are quite the sweetie yourself."

Unfortunately for the couple, they're not paying attention to their surroundings and the glass of milk that had been sitting between them topples over spilling onto Flynn before their lips can meet. "Arrrgh! That's cold!"

"Oh no, Flynn, I'm so sorry!" cries Gemma as she grabs two dish towels, one for the kitchen counter and one for Flynn's shirt.

"No worries, lass," he assures as he begins mopping himself up. "It's just a shirt. I can go and change it easily enough." He waggles his eyebrows at her. "Besides, it's better than a cold shower any day."

She laughs out loud and teases, "Well, you know the old saying, how you need to stay out of the kitchen if you can't stand the heat."

"Wise words, indeed," he agrees with a chuckle. "Even if it seems that we do our best cooking here."

"Flynn, stop it…" her voice trails off in embarrassment, still unaccustomed to the overwhelming feelings that she was beginning to feel for the man before her. She may be a genius but falling in love was one of the few things that the think tank never taught her.

Pleased at being the one to be putting her off balance for once, Flynn drops a quick kiss on her forehead before heading towards the stairs. "I'm going to go change; you try and think of something that we can do today by the time I get back."

Gem straightens from leaning over the railing and walks over to the head of the stairs to stand with his arms crossed defiantly over his chest. He hadn't needed to rush though to wait for Flynn, he was slowly taking the stairs one at a time staring at his sister with a goofy smile while she gazed back at him with the soulful eyes of a cow. He never even became aware of Gem's presence until he bumped into him. "Oh, sorry there, mate, I didn't even see you." He runs a hand nervously through his close-cropped hair. "I must not have been paying attention."

"No but you've been paying a lot of attention to my sister and don't think that I haven't noticed," growls Gem as he pokes his finger into Flynn's chest. He looks down at Flynn's milk soaked t-shirt with disgust. "My sister is not a cow and she does not give away her milk for free!" he warns before shoving past him and racing down the stairs to join Gemma for lunch.

"What was all that about?" he murmurs to himself as he starts pulling his shirt off while walking over to his room. "I know the lad fancies explosions but I never thought that he'd be aiming one at me."

 _I guess I told him. He won't be trying his milk and cookies technique for a while, at least not on my sister. Maybe I should warn Ziggy, he might decide to go after Dr. K next._

 _It looks like I was wrong. Just as I thought that I made my message loud and clear to Flynn, I find him alone with my sister at the beach. They're lucky that I hadn't set off my test rockets yet, there's no way that they would have been able to find cover for those explosions. Not that an explosion would have been the most shocking attack of the evening, no that would have to be reserved for Flynn trying to turn my sister against me._

"Love, we've put this off for long enough, you have to tell him." He puts his arm around her shoulders and pulls her towards him to offer what comfort and support he can. "Look, I know you've never had to go up against Gem before –"

"Try ever," she mutters miserably.

"Okay," he concedes, "ever, but there's really nothing else that can be done if we want to be together. He's dead set against it."

"That's only because he doesn't know you like I do." She nuzzles into him with a contented hum.

"Good thing too or I'd obviously be with the wrong sibling," he comments with a laugh.

She pulls away and punches his arm, satisfied when he lets out a surprised, "Ouch!" and rubs at his arm. "Quit teasing, this is serious!"

He lets out a tired sigh and holds his arms open to her, feeling grateful and complete when she falls into them without hesitation. "I know, lass, I was just trying to lighten the mood. Arguing with family is never easy but I'll be with you every step of the way. I'll even be right by your side if you want when you go to tell him. Just like when you accompanied me to tell my dad about us."

"Your dad loves me, he hasn't had any problems with us being together!" she huffs indignantly.

"Yeah, but we can't say the same for your brother." He immediately seeks to soothe her when she becomes downcast again. "Gemma, it was different for me and my dad. It's true that like the two of you that we relied on each other, but even being an outcast, I still had other people that I could rely on, other people that I had relationships with that my father encouraged and accepted. We simply need to persuade Gem to come around to the same way of thinking."

"And you think that's going to be so easy?" she inquires, her expression reflecting her skepticism.

"No, not at all," he denies readily as he tightens his embrace and rests his chin atop her head. "After all, Gem is a complex person; you're the one who's easy."

Gemma's screech almost had Gem rushing from his shadowed area on the beach below them to rush to his sister's aid. He was already rising from a crouching position when her laughter drifted down from the rocky outcrop above him.

"Easy? How do you have the nerve to call _**me**_ , easy?" she quizzes while playfully struggling against his hold on her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he says with an unrepentant laugh, "what I meant to say is _**simple**_." She ceases her struggles and arches an eyebrow at him. "Don't give me that look, Missy. My meaning doesn't have the same connotation that your reference afforded me. Mine is a compliment."

"How so?" she asks in a tone that states he has one chance to answer correctly before he's in trouble.

He twists around to fully face her, his features radiating both his sincerity and his love for her. "You are so open, with me and with everyone you meet. You don't lie, you don't cheat, you don't play games and everything you do is honest and upfront. In other words, what you see is what you get." He smiles at her in wonderment. "The best word of all that I can use to describe you is _simple_."

She tilts her head in consideration before grinning from ear to ear. "Simple, I like it. A simple woman for a simple mechanic, it's perfect."

"No, you're perfect," he leans over and kisses her gently, "the perfect woman for me."

"Yes," she murmurs as she rests her head against his chest and he holds her close to him, "we are perfect together. Now, we just have to convince my brother."

 _I can't remember how long I sat there on that beach mulling over what I'd heard. I do know that it was long enough to ensure that they had left and that Gemma would be asleep when I arrived home. The last thing that I ever want to do is battle with my sister. Battle with evil robots, evil zords, and Dillon's sister when she's evil? No problem. But not Gemma, we're not like the others. Gemma and I, we have never, ever fought, not once in all our time together and we have always been together. We've stood up for ourselves, stood up for others but we have never stood apart from each other and that's what I feel like Flynn is trying to make us do now. I love my sister and I don't want to fight with her. That's why I've been avoiding her. It's been an entire day since I've seen her, the longest that we've ever been apart…I miss her._

Knock, knock. Knock, knock. "Gem, I know you're in there." Gemma sighs in frustration and leans against the closed door. "You picked a great hiding place; I never would have guessed that you were in K's private bathroom. K hardly ever uses it since she stays in her lab all day and if Ziggy hadn't sneaked in for his morning bubble bath then I never would have found you." When she continues to be met with silence, she decides to stop trying to use the persuasion that Flynn is so good at and just be herself and use the simple approach. "I've been really worried about you, Gem, really, really worried about you. In fact, if I hadn't found you by this afternoon I was going to use K's computer to track your morpher. Please open the door…I miss my brother."

The door slowly opens and his eye peeks out of the crack of the door. "Are you sure? If that were true then I think that you would have made time to be with me, instead you've just been hanging out with Flynn." He eyes her accusingly. "Is there something that you want to tell me?"

 _He already knows._ Taking a chance, she places her hand against the door and watches him step back before she pushes it open and steps inside the room. She scans the bathroom and notes the various engine parts, electronic wiring and battery packs lying all over the counter and in the bathtub. "I see you've been redecorating, it looks nice. However, I doubt that K will see it that way."

"Actually, I didn't do anything, it was all here when I came in," he notes absently with a helpless shrug. "It's set up just like her lab; I'm surprised she's not in here more often."

"Judging by the temperature," she offers, "the humidity would play havoc with the computers she needs to complete her work," he finishes. They tentatively smile at one another; it was the first time in days that they had finished each other's sentence. It felt good, it felt right. "I'm sorry!" they both state at the same time before simultaneously pointing at each other and urging, "You first!"

Sighing in defeat, Gem sits down on the floor and Gemma sits down alongside him. "Okay, I'm sorry I hid from you, I won't do it again."

"Why did you hide from me? You've never done that before, we've always been…"

"Together?" he asks wistfully, remembering better days. "That was until Flynn."

"Is that what this is about, because I've made Flynn part of my life?" He averts his eyes but gives a curt nod. She reaches out to her brother and grasps his hand tightly in her own. "I don't want you to hide from our relationship, Gem. I want you to be a part of it."

"Which one?" he questions irritably. "Ours or the relationship you have with Flynn?"

"Both," she answers firmly. "I love Flynn, I want him in my life and I'm hoping he'll be part of our family one day. But you're my brother and I love you too so in order for that to happen, I need you to accept our relationship."

He stares down at their hands for a time before finally meeting her eyes. "So, if I don't accept your relationship then you'll stop seeing him?"

Her expression is crestfallen. "No," she affirms quietly, "but I won't be happy."

He turns his hand so that their palms meet and their fingers link together. "I want you to be happy," he vows wholeheartedly, "but I don't want him to take you away from me."

"That could never happen." She wipes away a stray tear. "I would never let that happen."

"You already have, Gemma!" He turns his face away from her but keeps hold of her hand. "I miss you. Not because just of one day but the past few weeks. Even when you were with me, you were still thinking of him. It's like we're never together at all." He faces her, his gaze full of heartbreak. "It doesn't matter if I accept your relationship or not. I'll never have a family again if you're not there to share it."

"Oh, Gem!" she cries before throwing herself into her brother's arms. "I'm so sorry, I had no idea! I never meant to hurt you!" She draws back with a sniffle. "I would never knowingly hurt you, Gem, you have to believe me!"

Knowing in his heart that she's speaking the truth, Gem pulls his sister back to him and hugs her tight. "Don't cry, Gemma, it's going to be okay, we'll be okay."

She takes a deep shuddering breath. "We will, really?"

"Of course, just like old times, remember?" He gives her a reassuring squeeze, instantly falling into the routine they had to comfort each other during their enslavement. "Like when we were in the Venjix factory and we'd have those days of grueling labor-"

"And want nothing more than to go to sleep and never wake up?" she murmurs.

"That's right," he tells her soothingly as he rubs circles on her back to further calm her, "but we woke up every morning and did it all over again until we finally were able to escape." He gently rocks her back and forth, reliving the moment that they were finally freed from their enslavement. "Do you remember what the best part of that moment was?"

She nods against his shoulder. "We were together." Realization suddenly dawns on her as she thinks back on the past few weeks and recalls how often Flynn occupied her thoughts versus spending time and paying attention to her brother. "I understand now why you're so upset and I promise not to ignore you again." She pulls away from his embrace to lean back against the side of the tub. "The feelings that I have for Flynn are so strong and so new that I'm still trying to learn how to process them without becoming overwhelmed. I'll need you to be patient with me but no matter what happens between Flynn and me, you have to know that there is no one who could ever overshadow the bond that we share. The two of us are family, we will always be together."

"I always want us to be together, Gemma; it's why I was hiding." She stares back at him in bewilderment. "I didn't want to fight with you." He looks guilty as he admits, "I was at the beach the other night when you were with Flynn and I overheard everything. I didn't mean to, it was an accident!" he hastens to assure her. "The point is that I heard Flynn tell you that you had to go against me and that's not something that I'm willing to do," he swallows harshly, "and it was hard hearing that it was something that you were not only willing to do but ready to do." He rests his arms on his bent knees. "I don't see how Flynn is going to be part of our family if he's so eager to pit us against each other and tear it apart."

"That's not what he meant, Gem. Flynn wasn't urging me to fight with you; he was hoping that I could get you to see reason." She gives him a pointed look. "You know as well as I do that you've been…shall we say…"

"Surly?" he suggests and she nods her head emphatically. "Towards Flynn?" he clarifies uneasily.

"Yes, and it upset him a lot. He thought the two of you were becoming good friends and then all of a sudden you can barely stand to be in the same room with him." She holds up her hand when he starts to interrupt her. "I know what you're thinking but he doesn't want to come between us, he just didn't want there to be any more tension between the three of us. That's why he wanted me to talk to you about our relationship, but in a totally non-confrontational manner!" she tacks on with a huge grin. "I _think_ that he wants to be part of our family someday but I _know_ that he wants to be part of our lives right now." She mimics his pose and stares earnestly at him. "Is there any chance that you can open up your heart to him being your friend again-"

"And your boyfriend?" he ends knowingly. Gemma nods eagerly and with a wry smile, Gem surrenders to the possibility of losing his sister to another man. It's disturbing and it's painful and it's the most difficult thing that he's had to do but he also knows that it's the right thing to do. The battle with Venjix may be over but they still continued to fight every day to make the world a better place and give everyone the life that they deserve. How could he ever deny that same happiness to his own sister? "I can do that," he proclaims both to himself and to her and for the first time in weeks, they both share a smile, one that isn't fleeting , isn't wistful and is meant only for the two of them.

"I love you," they declare in unison as they share one more hug before leaning back against the tub and surveying the room. "This isn't such a bad place," she muses. "Maybe we could join K in here and work on some of these projects together," he proposes. "Just like old times," they finish laughingly.

They decide to remain seated on the floor, enjoying the peace and quiet and most especially the restored peace between the two of them until Gem breaks the silence out of curiosity. "Old times usually involved late nights and a lot of fluids to keep us all hydrated. This place is pretty packed, what happens when we have to use the bathroom?"

Pondering the problem for but a moment, the twins' heads suddenly swivel to face each other as they high-five each other and blurt, "We'll use the one upstairs!"

 _Gemma and I are back together again, I've never been so happy. Maybe the Colonel will let us out of the dome sometime this week so that we can blow some things up to celebrate. Now that everything's okay with Gemma, I suppose I should talk things over with Flynn. He's not a bad guy, he could work a bit more on his mechanical skill but I stopped bringing that up when I realized he would ask Gemma to assist him. We stayed up way past our bedtime catching up on everything that has happened the past few weeks, I now know more about Flynn and Rebel Justice Unleashed than I ever thought that I would need to know. I'll talk to him after my mid-day run with Gemma and Scott. I think we can work everything out, at least I hope so._

"Another awesome run, good job people!" congratulates Gemma as she watches Scott and Gem huff and puff into the garage.

"Yeah, good run." Gem jerks his thumb towards the parked car that's currently being worked on, "I'm going to go over and talk to Flynn."

Gemma's smile widens with an excited grin which irritates an exhausted Scott. "Alright, I want the truth once and for all, Gemma. Where is that shortcut you're using to beat us?"

Continuing to smile, she merely she shakes her head in denial as she turns her attention to the two men across the room.

Gem raps a few times on the side of the car to alert Flynn to his presence. "Hey, Flynn, do you have a moment to talk?"

"Sure thing, lad," he gives himself a quick once-over and notices that he's practically doused in oil and grease. "Is here okay or do you need me to go and change so we can go somewhere else?"

"Here's fine, I feel more comfortable here." He rocks back and forth on his heels, full of nervous energy. "And this conversation will be uncomfortable enough."

Flynn exhibits an uneasy grin while he wipes his hands clean on an old rag. "Well, that sounds promising." He holds his arms out to his sides. "I assume that we're going to talk about Gemma?"

"Yes, please," he says timidly before clearing his throat and asserting himself, he was her big brother after all. "Exactly what are your intentions towards my sister?"

"Straight to the point, I like that." He attempts to smile in encouragement which quickly falters under Gem's stern gaze. _Wow, looks a bit like my dad there whenever I got sent home from school._ He shoves the rag into the pocket of his overalls and gives Gem his full attention. "Alright, a direct question deserves an honest answer. Originally, when we first met I was simply hoping to make a friend, maybe have somebody new to pal around with and have some fun." Gem's stare hardens slightly as he wonders at Flynn's version of fun. "Then we worked on the Road Attack zord together and something clicked and I thought our friendship could turn into something more." Now it's Flynn's turn to have his features stiffen as he remembers the final battle with Venjix.

"Then you and Gemma were deleted and I knew that what I felt for her was more, more than I had ever thought possible." He steps closer to Gem and checks the area to make sure that no one else can hear them. "It nearly destroyed me to lose her once, Gem, and if we're being honest then I have to tell you straight out, I'm not taking the chance on ever losing her again." He holds his hands up in the air as if trying to pacify the man before him. "I'm not trying to come between the two of you. Heck, I doubt that I could even if I wanted, your bond is that strong but I know that you haven't been accepting of us, of me, and I want to assure you that I'm willing to wait as long as is necessary until you're willing to give me a chance." Flynn notices that the tension is beginning to fall away from Gem's body and takes that as a good sign to offer his final admission. "I love your sister, Gem, and I have no intention of letting her go. I'll give you all the time you need to accept that but I'm here to stay. You can count on that."

"That was a lot of words." He assesses the man who by the sound of it may one day be his brother-in-law and speedily comes to the decision to make peace in the family, even if it's the making of a family that won't be official for years down the line. "And every single one of them was exactly what I wanted to hear." He gives a small shrug of his shoulders. "I've protected Gemma for as long as I can remember, it's not going to be easy to hand that responsibility over to another man… _ **someday,**_ but it's good to know that you have a high probability of being that man. "

"There's no probability about it, Gem, I am the **only** man for the job."

Gem steps away in mild affront. "Did you just call my sister a job?"

"You called her a cow!" he returns defensively.

Sensing that everything has been worked out and it was only one of their minor disagreements, Gemma hurries over to her two favorite men and stands between them, placing a kiss on each man's cheek. "Is everything settled between you two? It looks settled. Can we just say that it's been settled and go on from here?"

Both men watch her with amusement and love. "As unsettling as this whole situation has been, I believe we can call it settled. Right, Flynn?" he questions while holding his hand out.

"Right, Gem," he shakes his hand firmly and with unbound energy, "we may consider the matter settled." They watch as Gem heads back over to the kitchen to grab some juice, Flynn flashing a wide grin at his girlfriend. "See? It was a piece of cake. I don't know why you were so worried." She reels back to punch his arm and hastens to remind her, "Ah, ah, ah, you might want to rethink that, love. As you can see, I have about as much muck on me as that car has in its entire engine and your sports attire is quite lovely today."

She bears a smirk before taking a step forward to press herself against him. "Nice try, Flynn, but I'm not afraid of getting a little dirty."

"A girl after my own heart," he whispers huskily before claiming her lips in a kiss.

"Dude!" yells Scott to draw Gem's attention over to the otherwise engaged couple. "Are you just going to stand there and let Flynn mack on your sister like that?"

Gem sighs in resignation before selecting his beverage and taking a long swig. "Yeah, dude, I'm afraid I am," he replies with a soft smile as he raises his bottle in a toast to his sister and friend. "Good luck to us all."

 _Dear Super Cool Journal,_

 _This week has been quite the experience. I knew that our lives would change once we came to Corinth but I never realized how much. Growing up is hard but it's way better than growing apart and at least now I know that Gemma will have a good man to grow old with, or at least a high probability of it being Flynn. I can't believe he doubted me; I even had Dr. K check the math. In honor of this new aspect of our friendship, I thought that I would help the poor guy improve his chances. I heard Flynn telling Scott that he was thinking of taking Gemma to a nice restaurant tonight but I happen to know that there's an action movie that she's been dying to see. As soon as I finish today's entry, I'll go and buy tickets for the best seating and give Flynn plenty of tips on how not to do anything stupid. When I approached Scott and Ziggy to offer their input as well, they were very eager to offer their assistance. I know how much they love to give their opinions, especially on women. I wonder if Flynn realizes how lucky he is to have such great friends. And to ensure that this night couldn't be more perfect, I'll even sit between the two of them to show that we've rebuilt the bridges of family and friendship. I'm sure they won't mind if I come along, I'll even buy the popcorn._

 **The End**


End file.
